Political Questions: More Politics for 2011 Supreme Court Term?

The Constitution may bar the Supreme Court from
considering political questions, but the Nine will be hearing several cases this
spring that will have an impact on state and national politics.

From Texas redistricting in January to the Affordable
Care Act in March to immigration reform in April, this Supreme Court term is
shaping up to be the most politically-charged year since the 2000 Bush v.
Gore season.

Pending the outcome of the Court's January 6 conference, the term could get
even more political.

In considering the NATSO petition, the Supreme Court will decide
whether the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals ruling in In Re: Motor
Fuel Temperature Sales Practices Litigation warrants review. The central
question in the case is whether lobbyists and trade associations can assert a
First Amendment privilege against producing private political communications and
strategies in discovery.

Bluman v. Federal Election Commission raises the question of whether
a federal law prohibiting individuals, who are neither U.S. citizens nor
permanent residents, from making campaign contributions or Citizens
United-style non-campaign expenditures violates the First Amendment. The
D.C. District Court ruled in August that the ban survives strict scrutiny.

SCOTUSblog suggests that both of these petitions have a "reasonable
chance of being granted." Regardless of that likelihood, we doubt that
Supreme Court reversals in either of these cases would sit well with the general
populace. (Remember the discontent
surrounding the Citizens United decision?)

For updates on all of the politically-driven pending petitions in the current
Supreme Court term, add FindLaw's Supreme Court blog to
your RSS Feed.

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